Saithe comes in fits and starts

HB Grandi’s trawler Engey is in its second trip following a break in fishing due to an annual inspection that was carried out on the slipway in Reykjavík. According to Engey’s skipper Friðleifur Einarsson, fishing has been good, but has been slower since Easter.

‘We sailed in the 29th, so we were fishing over Easter. This is a capacity trip, with full 600 tubs, equivalent to 180 tonnes,’ he said, as we spoke to him with Engey still on the Selvogur Bank. The last few tows of the trip are being taken there and Engey is scheduled to be alongside in Reykjavík today.

‘We left harbour at midnight last Wednesday and have been mostly on the Mountains and areas around there. There’s plenty of golden redfish, but we have been mainly searching for saithe. That’s gone fairly well, but saithe comes in fits and starts. One day you can drop onto good saithe fishing, and the next day there’s nothing to be had,’ Friðleifur Einarsson said, adding that the saithe are decent season fish size, although the smaller fish have been more prevalent this season.

‘The tides are also small, which isn’t ideal for catching saithe, but we’re staying on the Selvogur Bank for the last day of the trip and hoping to get some saithe with the cod. In fact, cod fishing has often been better and it seems that the cod is staying inside the twelve mile limit that we’re not allowed to cross. But the smaller trawlers are doing well on cod inside the line,’ Friðleifur Einarsson said.